


crystalline structure

by robinya



Category: Wave!! Surfing Project
Genre: Indirect Confessions, M/M, somewhat of a shou study
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-09
Updated: 2020-05-09
Packaged: 2021-03-03 04:42:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,829
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24089086
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/robinya/pseuds/robinya
Summary: Ever since the break started, Nalu has been MIA. Where the heck has he been?
Relationships: Shou Akitsuki/Nalu Tanaka
Kudos: 12





	crystalline structure

Sho finds Tanaka sitting down near the water when he reaches the beach. No surfboard. He’s not sure what he was expecting, but with the other boy suddenly skipping all of their morning practices, Sho at least figured he’d be surfing at night. They had resolved to train over this break from school alongside Hinaoka, but Tanaka had been ignoring them both since the vacation started. It wasn’t until Sho gave up on trying to reach the other that Tanaka finally replied, asking to meet up on the beach. 

“So this is where you’ve gone to surf?” It comes out harsher than Sho had thought it would. He thinks he has the right to be a little mad though. For everything Tanaka said about surfing with him and Hinaoka, their routine has been awfully easy to throw away. The brunette pouts, taps the sand next to him. 

“Lemme explain. It’s not what you think.” Sho huffs, sitting down next to Tanaka. 

“And what is it that I think?”

“I don't know! That I want to stop surfing with you guys, or something.”

“You should’ve called. Sent a text message, even.”

“I know.” Nalu drags his fingers through the sand. Affronted by the lack of elaboration, Sho scolds him.

“I thought it was my fault. But Hinaoka said you didn’t even tell him about ditching, and I… was confused. If surfing meant so much to you, then how could you just up and leave like that? Did you even think about how we would both feel?” Nalu raises an eyebrow at this. 

“I figured it’d be alright… you two are always coddling each other. I’m just an asset.”

“How could you- I don’t think that way.” Sho asserts. 

“But you act like it. What else am I supposed to think, with both of you ignoring me so often?” Nalu shakes his head slightly, and Sho stills for a moment before frowning.

“That isn’t my intention. You could’ve told Hinaoka at least, he’s been worried about you.”

“I  _ know _ , alright! I needed some space to think about things.” 

“...Have you talked to Hinaoka about this?” Tanaka sighs. 

“Not yet. I wanted to see you first.”

“...Why?” The brunette shrugs, looking up at the night sky as he speaks. 

“What if I said I'd give you the moon?”

“What are you talking about?” Sho responds, exasperated. “I’d tell you that’s impossible.” Tanaka stares back at the blonde with a focused expression. It’s a little unnerving, until he takes out a small box and presses it into Sho’s hand.

The box is at least somewhat handmade, from the looks of it- adorned with colorful spirals and waves. Did Tanaka draw this? Sho figures that’s a stupid question: when he runs his finger over the pattern, he can feel the bumps and ridges of the layered paint.

“What is this?” 

“Stop asking me questions when the answer’s right there, golden boy.” Sho twitches at the nickname, but ignores it, instead returning his attention to the small box in his possession.

Inside the box rests a gemstone pendant, in the shape of the moon. It’s a light blue gem, but Sho doesn’t know enough about the topic to guess what it is. Apart from that mystery, the necklace is beautiful, with a silver chain. Sho is almost afraid to touch it.

“Aquamarine.” Tanaka says. “Wrong birthstone, but… people call it the color of sea water, and that reminded me of you.” 

“I remind you of the sea?” Tanaka pauses, looks away from Sho before answering. 

“Yeah? ...I’ve been surfing for as long as I can remember. I guess it felt like me and the ocean shared a bond that was uniquely ours. But lately I’ve been feeling like I should share those feelings with other people more.” Sho furrows his brows in confusion. 

“I didn’t even think you liked me.”

“Ah… you’re beyond irritating. But I think you understand. The feeling of freedom I feel on the waves is the same… I feel weightless around you. Y’kno, like I could just jump up and give you the moon.” Sho blushes, realizing. Tanaka’s face is also red, his gaze firmly stuck to a rock in the sand.

“What the heck? You really meant it.” 

“What’s that supposed to mean? I’m a man of my word!” Tanaka exclaims, holding a poorly contained grin. Sho laughs beside him. 

“How am I supposed to take you seriously when you make exaggerations like that?” 

“Excuse me! Since when have I ever exaggerated a single thing in my life! The moon, right there! In your hands!” Sho can’t help but smile wide, feeling elated.

“Of course, my bad.” He looks down at the pendant again, expression soft. “It’s beautiful… but the moon belongs in the sky.” 

“You won’t take it?” 

“It’s… too much.” An empty dining room table, the light snores of his mother sleeping in the adjacent room. Frozen dinners to choose from, his footsteps making the floorboards creak with every movement. It’s hard to be quiet, to not make any unnecessary noise. It's hard to be greedy, salt and sugar packets collected from various cafes and convenience stores. “I wouldn’t know what to do with it.” 

“You could wear it.” Tanaka mumbles, sighs. “Listen, am I- am I being too forward with this? I understand if you don’t… well. I didn’t really think you did, but I’m trying to be honest and I thought you were deserving of-” 

“That’s not what I meant.”

“Then what?” Nalu interjects, voice strained. “You don’t have to try so hard to be gentle with my feelings, I’m not _ Masaki _ .” He drops the name practically oozing spite, unable to contain it. Sure, Masaki is his best friend, but Nalu feels as though Sho has taken that title; everywhere the blondie goes, Corgi follows with his tail wagging.

“You can’t just give me something this expensive out of the blue and expect me to take it! ” Sho shuts the jewelry box with a snap, clearly frustrated. Tanaka, startled by the raise in Sho’s voice, grimaces.

“It wasn’t that expensive… Shoko helped me out with most of it, honestly.”

“Shoko?”

“Yeah. It was an impulse purchase, and I needed to make up the money, so I started working at Fantasy Land… that’s why I’ve been missing practice, by the way.”

“You...” He was working this whole time? “I didn’t mean to be so harsh before.” Tanaka scratches the back of his head. 

“It’s alright. I was the one that asked Shoko to keep it a secret.”

“...You do that a lot. Keep things from people.” Tanaka quirks an eyebrow. 

“Hey, I said that I was working on it, didn’t I?” Sho gives the brunette a small smile. 

“You did.” They sit in silence for a moment, observe the waves as they crash and recede. “I’d feel bad taking it.”

“I want you to have it.” Nalu insists. 

“...I’m sorry.” The empty living room, and it’s deafening silence, were often too much for Sho. He’d watch the wrinkle lines on his mother’s face deepen, listen to her sighs, her unsaid worries. Sho never said anything, perhaps for worry of seeing her cry- wanting to preserve the strength she’s always tried to show him. But there are a million ways to say I love you: putting a blanket on her when she’s passed out on the couch, having dinner ready when she comes back from her second job, always making sure that he did well in school so as not to worry her. Always, always, trying to give back in other ways. How could he not? Is that not what it means to love someone? 

Sho places the box gently on the sand between them, vivid color against neutral beige. Tanaka doesn’t respond, just stares at the box with a reflective expression. Sho’s heart feels on fire, throat constricting with the pressure to say something, anything. 

But what is there to say? 

The beach is never quiet. Even now, during its least populated hours, the tide is there to fill the silence Sho hates. He used to sit on the beaches in his hometown after school, just like this, letting the ocean rock him to sleep. They would tell him it’s okay to breathe, there you go, follow my lead. And he did, chased after the waves with a craving for something that would make him feel more alive. Surfing became the only thing he had.

Sho thought he was okay with that. Nobody could give him the feeling of freedom that the ocean did. But the more he hangs out with Hinaoka and Tanaka, the more Sho wonders if that’s enough- it’s as Tanaka said. They really do understand each other…

“I think when I’m with you, I feel seen.” The other boy blinks, being brought out of a daze.

“Seen? Where’d that come from?”

“It’s like you said. I think I can understand you, but even then… there are things I don’t know.”

“Hm?” Tanaka hums, “Like what?”

“Like… what three things you’d bring to a deserted island.”

“What kind of question is that?” Nalu’s voice rises as he breaks into a laugh. 

“A good one!” Sho exclaims, incredulous. 

“Uh-huh. Well how about this?” Tanaka gets up, picking up the box and dusting the sand off his shorts. “If either of us wins that competition coming up, I’ll tell you the answer then.”

“Yeah?” Tanaka grins. 

“Yeah. I think you can do it. But that doesn’t mean I’ll go easy on you either.” He extends his hand out and Sho grabs it, smiles as Tanaka pulls him up. Sho squeezes Tanaka's hand before letting go, and the taller boy averts his gaze, face reddening. “And maybe, when you can say that you understand me better than you do now… I’ll try again.” Sho blushes in tandem with the declaration. 

“I would like that.” Tanaka bites his lip before turning around and running up the beach, surprising Sho. “Tanaka?” The brunette stops when called, yelling out so Sho can hear him.

“I-I’m too happy right now! It’s weird! I’ll be there tomorrow morning, so you better not slack off!” Just like that, Tanaka leaves, and Sho is overwhelmed with the urge to cover his face with his hands. His cheeks are warm, heart pulsing against his chest. 

Closing his eyes, he makes sure that he’s calm before starting the walk home. It’s late, but he’s sure he can get enough rest. He has to, if he’s to be on his game tomorrow. Trying his best is a given, but improving takes time. Sho just hopes Tanaka can tell. After all, there are a million ways to say I love you: an encouraging pat on the shoulder, the sharing of food when they’re eating out, the hearts drawn on Tanaka’s study sheets when Sho adds to them. Tomorrow, the day after, and the day after that, Sho will give his all, fully knowing that Tanaka will reciprocate tenfold. 

**Author's Note:**

> for the future when the movie comes out and im proven wrong, take this with a grain of a salt


End file.
